95/100
5 Stars
Bob Campbell
Strong sweet fruit with an obvious vanilla American oak component. Strong primary fruit with sweet plum and berry plus attractive earthy, savoury characters. Very classy wine that's deliciously drinkable now
Tasted: 23/02/2012
Drink: N/A
93 Points Robert Parker
Mature notes of cigar box mark the nose of the 1996 Cabernet / Shiraz Bin 389. It still has plenty to give, as it seems to be on a lovely plateau of maturity that should last at least another five years. Tobacco, cedar and vanilla notes are balanced by hints of dried cherries and red plums. It's medium to full-bodied, with silky tannins that linger elegantly on the finish.
Source: Robert Parker (Robert Parker Wine Advocate) by Joe Czerwinski. October, 2018
95 Points James Halliday
Medium to full red-purple; a dense wine on the bouquet with layers of earth, chocolate, berry and oak. Wonderfully sweet blackberry fruit is offset with sweet chocolate, and rounded off with sweet tannins and oak on the finish mark an exceptionally good Bin 389. Drink to 2016.
James Halliday. July, 2021
96 Points nicholas.enge_19549
Happy birthday to me! Happy birthday to me! Nose of blackberry and cedar, with sweet fruit showing more as time passed. In the mouth, supremely impressive in its richness, ripeness, balance and power. Chocolatey tannins. Tremendous length. Decanted 2 hours and drank over another 2, I would recommend decanting 4 hours or more as this bottle still hadn't peaked when the last drop disappeared. Great accompaniment to roast beef, though my wife and I almost had to drink it without food, after my 1 year old daughter cranked the oven up to 265 degrees celsius while nobody was looking. The situation was rescued just in time. Drink in the next 1 to 10 years
April, 2012